Last week, Uvaggio hosted its latest Somm Slam at the Coral Gables Woman’s Club. Typically, the series pits Uvaggio’s Head Wine-O Heath Porter against local sommeliers in a wine-pairing dinner battle; previous competitors have included somms from 50 Eggs and The Genuine Hospitality Group.

This time around, though, the competitor hailed from New York: award-winning sommelier Patrick Cappiello. Cappiello currently serves as Wine Director for Rebelle as well as Pearl and Ash on the Bowery. Supporting the two in the kitchen were Uvaggio’s Tanner Gil and Top Chef talent Grayson Schmitz. Needless to say, guests were in for a treat.

Blink, and you’ll miss Happy Wine while driving on Southwest 8th Street (Calle Ocho). The cozy wine shop/wine bar on 57th Avenue sits inside an unassuming building, and it’s easy to pass by if you’re not looking closely. Those who do spot Happy Wine will be rewarded with over 1,000 wine selections, tasty food and amazing hospitality.

This past Tuesday, we teamed up with Coral Gables Love to host our second Coral Gables Food Tour. The tour took diners to three different neighborhood restaurants for good food, good drinks and good conversation. From 6 p.m. – 9 p.m., guests enjoyed bites and libations at Angelique Euro Cafe, Cibo Wine Bar and OBBA Sushi & More.

It’s easy to miss Lekoke Wine & Bites while you’re driving down SW 8th Street, more popularly known as Calle Ocho. The cozy, unassuming wine bar doesn’t have the giant signs that hot spots like Ball and Chain, Azucar and other Little Havana staples have — blink and you’ll pass right by it. But although Lekoke lacks the snazzy window dressing of its neighbors, it deserves just as much of your attention.

When we visited Barceloneta for a media dine a few weeks back, we weren’t expecting much. The Sunset Harbour restaurant, which specializes in Spanish Mediterranean cuisine, has been a staple of the area since 2011, but we just never had any urge to stop by; our “just-okay” experience at their now-shuttered South Miami location probably had something to do with it.

But life is all about second chances, right? Well, we’re glad we went back. Little did we know that we would enjoy one of our favorite meals of 2016 here — and one that had us immediately asking, “Did we just become best friends?”